Q & A with Author Ashley Franklin & GIVEAWAY!

Hello world!

Welcome to my book blog. For this Q & A, please welcome my friend and talented author Ashley Franklin who wrote the picture book NOT QUITE SNOW WHITE published by HarperCollins. She explains her journey below.

But first, she’s doing a generous GIVEAWAY! Ashley will gifting one lucky winner with her PB, for US residents only please. To enter, please click HERE.

 

Can you describe the journey to publication for this book?
My journey to publication was a bit unorthodox. I landed my first agent thanks to #PBPitch. NOT QUITE SNOW WHITE wasn’t the manuscript that piqued her interest because I hadn’t written it yet. It was after many “like it but not in love with it” rejections that I switched gears and started writing new manuscripts, one of which was NQSW. Though I’m no longer with that agent, I appreciate what she did to help find the perfect editor for the story.

Where did you draw the book’s inspiration?
Thanks to blog posts from Tara Lazar’s StoryStorm (then PiBoIdMo), I got the idea to look within myself and my experiences for book ideas. I knew I wanted to write an African American princess, and the story took many different shapes until I got to the final product.

Please share some of your writing process.
I write quickly and revise slowly. My process is a puzzle of scribbles and notes from notebooks, my phone, and bits of paper that I assemble once I finally have a pretty good idea of the direction I want to go with a story.
I don’t have a set schedule that I adhere to every day or week. I’m a work from home mom. That doesn’t work for my life. When I get moments to write, I take them, and I make sure that’s where my focus stays.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve always been a writer. As a kid, I had a diary. When frustrated as a teen, I wrote poetry and kept a journal. It just took me a while to realize that I wanted to pursue writing professionally. That really didn’t hit me until I had my first child and was frequently at the library searching for books I wanted him to experience that weren’t problematic, out of touch, or not particularly meaningful to his already lived and likely upcoming experiences (in my opinion).

Where do you see your career headed? Do you have other WIPs or projects in the pipeline you would like to mention?
I don’t like to be boxed in, so I see myself writing widely—making something for the middle grade audience, dabbling with poetry…so many exciting possibilities

Please share your favourite kidlit books that have inspired you and served as mentor texts. Pick one classic and one contemporary book. What is it about them that moved you?
Clearly I turned to fairytales. (I know I’m cheating a little with that.) I also turned to Tammi Sauer’s MARY HAD A LITTLE GLAM. I like the idea of taking an old or familiar concept and making it something new.

What is the best (one) piece of advice you would give to other writers?
Well, self-care is important, and I think that’s something we writes tend to put on the back burner—whether that be out of choice or necessity. So, my advice would be this: Nourish yourself first for your ideas to flourish.

And a bonus Q- If you could be any flavour of ice cream, which one would you be and why?
Butter pecan—salty, sweet, a bit nutty. That’s me, lol.

BIO
Ashley Franklin is a writer, mother, and adjunct college professor. Ashley received her M.A. from the University of Delaware in English Literature, where she reaffirmed her love of writing but realized she had NO IDEA what she wanted to do about it.
Ashley currently resides in Arkansas with her family. Her debut picture book, NOT QUITE SNOW WHITE, was released July 9, 2019 by Harper Collins. For more information on Ashley and her writing journey, you can visit her website: www.ashleyfranklinwrites.com

 

Social media savvy?  You can find Ashley on one of these platforms:
Twitter:@differentashley
Facebook: Ashley Franklin
Instagram: @ashleyfranklinwrites